Mainly sewing, crochet and general making of things. With a little real life thrown in every now and then.

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Tag Archives: Appliqué

If you *like* Little Red Monkey & Co’s Facebook page you will know that last night I did a somewhat foolish thing. I cracked open a bottle of wine during an impromptu sewing session. You know the sort where you empty your entire fabric collection – including the scrap box – all over the living room. I was inspired by a fab tutorial found on Comfort Stitching, no idea how I stumbled onto this blog (may have been the wine distracting me from online grocery shopping), but I am glad I found it. So out came my fabric, large helping of wine, and I was off on my free-motion-embroidery journey. I didn’t expect it to work, i really didn’t. Maybe it was the lack of expectation, maybe it was the wine making me carefree about that needle cm’s from my hands. But it turned out alright……I was that pleased I made it into a cushion. Little M has claimed it – he is my number one fan after all 🙂

My first ATC swap is currently on route to it’s new owner (it is a secret swap so ssssshhhhh). Here is a sneaky peak….

It is the first *swap* that I have done and I have loved it! I had never heard of a Textile Artist Trading Card before reading Ali’s post and signing up for the 1st Very Berry Handmade swap. But once I started my research (aka google) I realised that they are more common than you would think. There is a fabulous Flickr group which shows the cards made for this swap, they are all pretty awesome! I would link it but not sure how, I am very new to Flickr, in fact I joined it for this swap. If you search *very berry handmade ATC swap* then you should find the group.

I was lucky enough to receive Ayumi Takahashi’s book, Patchwork, Please! for my birthday last month. It is a fabulous introduction to paper piecing, and just what I needed. My first attempt is going well now that I understand the whole fabric underneath/paper on top so you can’t see it thing! This is the paper pattern for the coaster (Mug Rug) that I have traced from the book ((it should be enlarged to make a pot stand but I am too impatient!))

And here is the back which is actually the front! I am sure you will agree it is coming along nicely, and a great way to use up scraps.

My embroidered toadstool design is nearly finished too. I think I may add some applique flowers and maybe a tiny bee buzzing around in the sky somewhere. I also need to decide what to do with it when it is finished. I may keep it in the frame and use as a wall hanging, I had originally planned to incorporate it into a cushion, but I am not sure my stitching will be able to withstand daily life with a toddler. What else could I do with it??

My Textile Artist Trading Card is finished and ready to be posted off to it’s new owner! I am so pleased with how it has turned out, I love my design and will probably be incorporating it into more things in the future. here is a sneeky peak until I photograph it finished. I hope the new owner likes it!

And the stepping stones in a woodland not too far from us. Very exciting if you are 3 (not so much if you are trying to keep the 3 yr old dry!!)

Like this:

My first attempt at an appliqué block. I am pretty pleased with it. The stitching took forever, but once I got the hang of it I did speed up a little. My (YouTube) research lead me to do this…….

(It looks pretty don’t you think?)

Using paper underneath the fabric to help it move, thus keeping the stitches even. I quote “…you can buy stabiliser paper but ordinary paper will work just fine…” All was well until I tried to remove it. Let me tell you this did not happen in the video…

It is going to take me forever to get it all out. So is it the paper? The stitch? Or just a bad idea? I would appreciate you help here. It all looked so simple on the video 😦